Device for developing photoreproductive papers



'2 Sheets-$het 1 Feb. 20, 1951 Filed June 7, 1949 Hw m JNVENTOR. Z 015 Vey/ez Ary Feb. 20, 1951 L. VEYRET 2,542,381

DEVICE FOR DEVELOPING PHOTOREPRODUCTIVE PAPERS Filed June 7, 1949 2 Sheefr,s$heet 2 JNVENTOR. I 104 45 Va /ref Patented Feb. 20, 1951 DEVICE FOR. DEVELOPING] PHO. TO REPRODUCTIVE? PAPERS LouisVeyret,.Paris,.France, assignor to La Cello phane, Earis,.,Franc e, a French company Application June '7, 1949; Serial Nb. 971587 1 Claim.

Photoreproductive papers in which the sensi-- tized coating consists of a stable mixtur ofa photosensitive diazo and an azo-compoundare usually developed-by the mere action of ammonia gas.

toaccomplishthis operation. A practical condition generally imposed upon suchdevices is the deodorization of the sheets after development,

since the ammonia. gas retained by. them in the absence of such a. supplementary operationwill be diffused in the atmosphere of the room. and

render occupancy disagreeable.

Thepresentinventio-n relates to an improved device for developing photoreprod'uctive papers,

affording. the. deodorization of the said. papers.

after development with ammonia gas by very simplemeans. This device, which has. no damper or valve, its operation beingreiiected entirelysby,

a simple intermittent rotary motion of a mov ing. part, is chiefly characterized in comprising. a:

rotary drum divided into, three longitudinal: compartmentsand mounted in a fixed outer distributing. drum in such a manner that each compante ment in turn is successively placedin communication with the openair. for. insertion of. work, with a source, of ammonia for developingtha work, and Withadeodorization circuit.

Other characteristics will appear from a fur-' ther description below.

In the accompanying drawings; intended. by way of example only:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section taken on the line ll of Fig. 2 of a machine pursuant to the invention;

Fig. 2 is a transverse section taken on the line 2-2 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the machine;

Fig. 4 is an end view thereof;

Fig. 5 is a transverse section similar to Fig. 4 showing a modification of the machine;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal vertical section of another modification taken on the line 6-6 in Fig. 7;

Fig. 7 is a plan view of the machine shown in Fig. 6; and

Figs. 8 and 9 are horizontal sections taken on the lines 8-8 and 9-9, respectively, in Fig. 6.

In the example shown in Figs. 1 to 5, which relate to an apparatus with a horizontal axis, the said apparatus has a fixed outside drum T. This drum consists of a cylindrical wall [with horizontal axis X-X and two heads 2 and 3. The wall I is preferably fitted with a base 4 or other means of placing it on a table or other hori- A large number of more or less compii' catedmachines or devices have been conceived" zontal support. This wall is open: in its upperportion at 5 alonga central anglexless than or atmost equal to The head 2 is-formedin one piece with, ormay be attached to, the-wall I, and is cut out at 6 at the same central angler.

the cutout not reaching; to the axis X-X, It

may for example have the trapezoidal form-shownin' Fig; 4;

The other head 3 is circular. It" is immovableand fixedto the wall I by suitable means; e; g; by'means of screws not shown:

The cylindrical wall I-, near its twoends and along one generatrix, bears two holes 1' and 8 fitted withconnections 9 and- I0; More or; less directly" opposite, it has-an additional elongated opening H which opens into a reservoir l 2tightly= sealed to the said wall I by a flange I3 and screws l 4 (Fig; 2)

The cylindrical drum T contains another-drum- T; inserted by removal of the detachable head 3. The drum T may turn with light friction inside the-'drum T. It has a cylindrical wall I5" and arearhead. I6;and= is open at the other end. Itsinterior is divided intothree compa1=tments-a, b, c (Fig. 2) with-central anglesof 120 bythreeradial partitionsl 'l attachedto anaxial Bo-facilitate rotation: of the drum T, itshub is: preferably prolonged forward bya shaft 29* passing: through the-front head of the drum T and fitted with a small operating knobZ-l.

The front: edge 22 of the interior drum T bears-lightly against the inside surface of the wall 2 of the outside drum T, so as to afford a substantially tight seal between the two workingcompartments b and c. The tightness of the joint may moreover be increased by attaching strips of flexible material to the front edges of the partitions ll, or by lining the front head 2 of the fixed drum T with felt.

In using the apparatus, one of the connections 9, ll] communicates with the open air while the other is connected to the suction or exhaust of a fan. Finally, an ammoniacal solution is placed in the tank I 2.

Then the operation will be as follows. Material to be developed is inserted at a through the opening 6. The material in C is in process of .development. The material in b is in process of deodorization by the air current set up between the connections 9 and In by the fan communieating with one of them. When developing is completed, the inside drum T is turned through 120 in the direction of the arrow 1 (Fig. 3), so that the developed sheets that have been deodorized in b can be removed at a, while those just developed in pass into the deodorization compartment 12 and those to be developed pass at 0 into the compartment filled with ammonia vapors. 1 V

It may be noted (Fig. 2) that the are 'r, s, less than 180, between the opening II where the of the drum T in the direction of the arrow has arrived at the point of exposing the ammonia tank 12, the neighboring unperforated arc of the following partition III) has already partially en.- gaged the outer drum T at t.

In the same Fig. 5, the ventilating holes I and 8 are moreover so placed as not to open into a perforated portion of the movable drum until after the access opening for the ammonia vapors has been completely covered by the following unperforated arc.

Similar results could be obtained without restricting the perforated surface of the movable drum by reducing the angle as of aperture of the fixed drum, except that this angle must always remain sufficiently large to permit convenient loading and unloading of the device.

Figs. 6 to 9 show a modification of the device with a vertical axis.

The outer drum T has a cylindrical wall 23 with vertical axis Y-Y, rigidly and tightly fixed to a lower bottom 24 and a false bottom 25. A diametral partition 26 divides the space between these twoheads into two chambersfl and 28.

4 V in loading position, b is the developing position and c the deodorization position. A knob 40 serves to revolve the drum T' in the direction of the arrow.

The compartment 28 may contain substances capable of absorbing ammonia gas, such as sulfuric acid or sodium bisulfate, thus accomplishing the deodorization within the apparatus itself without venting the ammonia gas released from the developed material to the outside.

" ,It would also be possible, in that case, to elimi- I nate the forcedair current, since with the elimination of the upper exhaust opening 35, the

ammonia released by the paper would pass through the opening 30 to be fixed by the absorbent substances.

An analogous arrangement could likewise be made in the horizontal devices of Figs. 1 to 4 and The air chamber 2'! opens to the outside through an,-opening 29 and also into the fixed drum through an opening 30 of the double bottom 25 (Fig. 9). The chamber 28, which is to receive the ammoniacal solution 3|, opens into the drum T through an opening 32 in the false bottom 25.

Finally, the fixed drum T is provided with a cover" 33 (Figs. 6 and 7) with opening ,34 for loading and opening 35 for connection to a fan.

Three vertical bottom 25 is perforated at 38.

partitions 29 form three compartments a, b, c

In theposition shown, the compartment a is Fig. 5.

The invention is in no way restricted to the embodiments shown and described, these having been given solely by way of example.

What is claimed is: V

A device for developing photoreproductive.

paper by the action of ammonia gas, comprising a stationary drum having an imperforate peripheral wall and a pair of end walls, an inner drum mounted to rotate therein, said inner drum having a cylindrical wall in sliding contact with said first cylindrical wall and having an open end, and

having radial partitions forming three equal compartments, one of said end walls having an open: ing for the insertion of paper to be developed through the open end of said inner drum into a compartment thereof, an ammonia reservoir having a duct communicating through the peripheral wall of said stationary drum with said inner drum, an ammonia vent in the'p eripheral wall of REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 203,976 Switzerland Sept. 1, 1939 574,302 Great Britain Dec. 31, 1945 586,617 Great Britain Mar. 25, 1947 577,088 Germany May 23, 1933 

